The Traktor DJ Studio by Native Instruments is a professional DJ mixing software that integrates two independand players and many extremly useful functions like the beat matcher, a very nice digital scratcher or special filter effects. To use the software in a professional envrionment, a multichannel audiocard with several separate and independand output channels like the DSP24 MEDIA 7.1 is needed. In this setup example, we will use channel 1/2 as stereo monitor output (for headphone monitoring) and channel 3/4 as separate and independand stereo output for the main audio signal.
First we have to assign the output channels for independand playback inside the Output Mixer control panel software. In order to do that, please connect WaveOut 1/2 with Output 1/2 (this channel will be used for headphone monitoring) and WaveOut 3/4 to Output 3/4 (this will be used as output for the master playback). Now connect your headphones to the headphone output on the external box and your amplifier / speakers to output 3 (left) and output 4 (right) on the back of the external box.
Inside Traktor, please click on Setup. Activate ASIO in the lower right corner of the Audio section and select ASIO ADSP24 in the Device selection box on the right. Make sure not to select any of the other output possibilites.
Now click on Setup to assign the different output channels of our hardware to the main and monitor outputs of Traktor. In the dialog that apears now, you can define the channels for the Master and the Monitor output.
Please assign ASIO channel 01 to Monitor > Left (Mono) and ASIO channel 02 to Monitor > Right. Above that, assign Master >
Left (Mono) to ASIO channel 03 and Master > Right to ASIO channel 04.
When you are using Traktor, you will be able to play a track or a mix via the Master output (for the audience) while you pre-listen to another track via the headphones on the Monitor channel.
By default, the output of Traktor is played via the Master output channel. In the upper right corner of the Traktor window you can control the master output volume. In our example setup, the Master signal is played via Output 3 / 4 on the back of the external box.
If you want to monitor a signal via the headphones, you can select either player A, the MIX or player B. This picture shows that the signal from player B is audible via the headphones. If you select MIX, both player signals are audible over the headphone. Last but not least: if you select A, you can listen to player A.
You can get the latest updates and information on Traktor DJ Studio on http://www.native-instruments.net/.
VIII. Troubleshooting / FAQ
This chapter addresses common questions to solve possible problems and avoid conflict with other PC hardware or specific system configurations.
Q: What are the minimum system requirements?
A: The card will work on a 100% PCI 2.1 compilant mainboard with Intel Pentium 133MHz CPU (or higher / compatible) and at least 32 MB of memory. We strongly recommend to use at least an Intel Celeron, Pentium II or AMD Duron CPU and 128 MB of memory to be compatible with currrent audio software. Also note: the software you are using may have even higher system requirements. We also recommend that your PC is equiped with a DVD-ROM drive.
Q: Can I use the card with an AMD Athlon / Duron / Thunderbird CPU? Will it work with a VIA Cyrix CPU?
A: Yes, of course! There are no compatibility issues with microprocessors. Please also check the following question about VIA chipsets, as many mainboards for AMD and VIA CPUs are based on VIA chipsets.
Q: What about VIA chipsets? Can I use my VIA chipset based mainboard with the card?
A: Yes, you can use VIA based systems with the DSP24 series of cards. Unlike with some other chipsets, the configuration in this case is more 'sensitive' and the system needs to be properly configured to avoid possible trouble:
Please make sure the DSP24 PCI card gets a unique and unshared IRQ. Secondly, a recent version of the VIA 4-in-1 driver (we recommend at least v4.31) and the VIA USB Filter driver must be installed (check http://www.via.com.tw/ or the website of your mainboard manufacturer). If you are using Windows 98SE with USB enabled, Microsoft's UHCD Update should be used as well (do a search for 'uhcd.sys' on Microsoft's Knowledge Base).
Please check if there is an update for the BIOS of your mainboard ... if so, please download and use it.
On mainboards with the KT133 and KT133A chipset, you must use high quality 133MHz memory modules only. Also check the correspsonding setting in your BIOS (it should be set to 133MHz) and make sure the memory timing is not set to an incorrect (e.g. too low) value.
Set PCI DELAY TRANSACTION in your BIOS to DISABLED. Then, set PCI DEVICE LATENCY TIMER to a value of 32 or lower. PCI MASTER READ CACHING should be set to DISABLED as well (could cause performance problems, but because of the VIA southbridge bug, this setting is required).
Last but not least, we recommend to disable all power managment related functions.
Check the service section on www.STAUDIO.com from time to time to get more updated info on this topic.
Q: Is it possible to install this card in a system with onboard-sound or another soundcard?
A: Yes! As long as the other soundchip does not use a Envy24 / ICE1712, there should be no problems. You should make sure that both devices do not share their IRQ. We recommend to connect the line out of your onboard soundcard to the 1/8" line in on the MEDIA 7.1 PCI card to be able to use both cards simultaneously.
Q: How many available IRQs do I need to use the card?
A: Exactly one. It should be unshared if possible, because the DSP24 is a busmaster device ... otherwise you might get performance problems. It does not matter which IRQ number has been assigned to the card.
Q: I have read that the card is full duplex, but I can't do simultaneous record and playback with Cakewalk!
A: Simultaneous record and playback needs to be enabled in Cakewalk Pro Audio. In the software, go to Settings > Audio Options > Advanced and make sure Enable simultaneous record and playback is checked.
Q: I am using Cubase VST 5.x and I'm going crazy: always when I change a setting inside External Links or the mixer, the playback suddenly stops!
A: Make sure the menu entry Options > Active in Background is checked inside Cubase. This is a general Cubase setting and not related to the audiocards driver.
Q: I am using Cubase VST 3.xx and I'm going crazy: always when I change a setting inside External Links or the mixer, the playback suddenly stops!
A: Goto File > Preferences and make sure that Active in Background is checked for MIDI and Audio. This is a general Cubase setting and not related to the audiocards driver.
Q: I am using Cubase VST 5.x and it crashes as soon as I select the ASIO driver under Windows 2000 / XP.
A: Launch SetupMME (inside the Steinberg folder of your Start-menu) and disable Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth as MIDI device. We also recommend to set ADSP24 Int. Audio Device as prefered playback device in Control Panel > Sounds & Multimedia > Audio.
Q: I am using Nuendo under Windows 2000 / XP and it crashes as soon as I select the ASIO driver.
A: Please set ADSP24 Int. Audio Device as prefered playback device under Control Panel > Sounds &
Multimedia > Audio. Then reboot the system and launch Nuendo again.
Q: I am using Logic Audio 4.8.1 or 5.0 under Windows 2000 / XP and it crashes as soon as I select the ASIO driver and re-launch Logic.
A: Please set ADSP24 Int. Audio Device as prefered playback device under Control Panel > Sounds &
Multimedia > Audio. Then reboot the system and launch Logic again.
Q: When recording or playing audio, I get an audible click about every 3 to 5 seconds. Is the hardware defective?
A: No! First of all, check the following two settings (under Windows 9x/Me):
DMA access for your IDE HDDs must be enabled. Goto Control Panel > System > Device Manager > Disk Drives and select Properties for each IDE-HDD you have installed (an entry is typically called GENERIC IDE DISK TYPExx). Now enable DMA under Settings.
Please check these settings from time to time. Some Windows installations 'loose' the DMA and CD-ROM notification settings when you are changing certain elements in the hardware configuration or if you boot Windows in Safe Mode.
Under Windows 2000/XP, please check the next section in this chapter with more details about optimizing your system for audio editing and recording.
Q: I can hear cracks and noise when I play my recorded audio signal! Is this a hardware problem?
A: In most cases this problem can be solved by changing the interrupt which has been assigned to your hardware. Check in Control Panel > System > Device Manager > Computer > Properties if there is another hardware component using the same interrupt as the DSP24 PCI-card (it should have its own interrupt, especially on mainboards using the VIA chipset). Except an IRQ-Holder (IRQ steering) entry, no other device should be listed with the same IRQ number. If you find such a problem, you usually have to install the DSP24 PCI card into a different PCI slot. On some mainboards you can change the IRQ assignment inside the BIOS of your mainboard.
Q: I can hear noise when I move a window or fader on screen inside my audio application. I am using an ATI Rage 128 graphic card.
A: Please download and install current drivers for your graphic card and set the bit-depth to 32bit (not lower).
This will reduce the system load the graphic card is causing.
Q: I can hear noise when I move a window or fader on screen inside my audio application. I am using an Matrox Millenium/Mystique/G200 card.
A: Please download and install current drivers for your grpahic card. Inside the Matrox specific options you can find a setting called Busmastering - please disable it.
Q: Can I use Logic SoundTrack24 under Windows 2000/XP?
A: You need at least version 4.8.1 of Logic SoundTrack24 (also called "Volume2") in order to use it under Windows 2000/XP. The older release v4.2 (sometimes called "Volume1") only supports Windows 9x/Me.
Please contact ST Audio and/or your local distributor to get more information on this topic.
Q: I am not able to change the MME / ASIO / GSIF settings for the multiclient driver in the Hardware Settings dialog.
A: Under Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000/XP, these settings are not available as there was no multiclient support for GigaSampler-/Studio on this operating system when this manual was created. Check www.STAUDIO.com to get more information about this topic and updated drivers.
Q: I have problems to read the provided documentation files with the PDF-extension (e.g. the Logic SoundTrack24 or the DCart32 V4 manuals). How can I resolve this?
A: To view or print PDF-files you need to use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader software which you can download for from www.adobe.com. You can also install the software from the Logic SoundTrack24 CD-ROM by launching ar40eng.exe in the \tools directory on the CD.
Q: My audio recordings from the line input sound very strange (e.g. the bass level is to high, the auverage volume not correct). What is causing this trouble?
A: Make sure to disable the Phono switch on the front panel if you are recording line level signals. Enable the Phono switch only if you directly connect a turntable to the MEDIA 7.1 to enable the needed RIAA EQ filtering.
Q: Why do I get error messages that the ASIO Multimedia test/configuration failed using Cubase VST, Cubasis VST or Nuendo from Steinberg?
A: This test is done by the ASIO Multimedia driver from Steinberg that simulates ASIO for soundcards without ASIO support. It would disappear as soon as this driver is configured properly. However, as the DSP24 series of cards have their own ASIO driver for Windows 9x/Me/2000/XP, you don't need to run this test at all. Just select the ASIO driver (ASIO ADSP24) and then the ASIO Multimedia driver will no longer be used.